A prophet says: Get the pagans out of the Arabian Peninsula!

A prophet says: Get the pagans out of the Arabian Peninsula!

They said: the Jews and others lived on their lands in peace, then Islam came to expel them from their houses with their children and wives…Is this act from Muhammad's mercy when he said: " Get the pagans out of the 'Arabian Peninsula "?!

They referred to the following texts:

1 – The Correct Bukhrai, book of (incursions), chapter (the prophet's (PBUH) illness and death), no. 4078. Ibn Abbas said: Thursday! And how great that Thursday was! The ailment of Allah's messenger became worse (on Thursday) and he said, fetch me something so that I may write to you something after which you will never go astray." The people (present there) differed in this matter, and it was not right to differ before a prophet. Some said, "What is wrong with him ? (Do you think ) he is delirious (seriously ill)? Ask him ( to understand his state )." So they went to the prophet and asked him again. The Prophet said, "Leave me, for my present state is better than what you call me for." Then he ordered them to do three things. He said, "Turn the pagans out of the 'Arabian Peninsula; respect and give gifts to the foreign delegations as you have seen me dealing with them." (Saeed Ibn Jubair, the sub-narrator said that Ibn Abbas kept quiet as rewards the third order, or he said, "I forgot it.") (See Hadith No. 116 Vol. 1)
2 – The Correct Muslim, book of (Jehad), chapter (Getting the Jews and Christians from the Arabian peninsula), no. 3313.
It has been narrated by Umar Ibn al-Khattib that he heard the messenger of Allah (PBUH) say: "I will expel the Jews and Christians from the Arabian Peninsula and will not leave any but Muslim".
3 – The Correct Muslim, book of (jehad), chapter (expelling the Jews from Al Hijaz), no. 3311. Abu Huraira said:

While we were in the masjed (mosque), the messenger of Allah came out and said: "Let us proceed to the Jews." So we went out with him till we came to Bait-al-Midras. The prophet stood up there and called them, saying: "O assembly of Jews! Surrender to Allah (embrace Islam) and you will be safe!" They said, "You have conveyed Allah's message, O Aba-al-Qasim". The messenger of Allah then said to them:"That is what I want; embrace Islam and you will be safe." They said:"You have conveyed the message, O Aba-al- Qasim". The messenger of Allah then said to them:"That is what I want," and repeated his words for the third time and added: "Know that the earth is for Allah and I want to exile you from this land, so whoever among you has property he should sell it, otherwise, know that the land is for Allah and His messenger".

First: Islam has an important concept, that is "There's no compulsion in religion", and everyone has the freedom of creed…As for the Arab pagans, they could stay in their disbelief, on condition that they leave the Arabian Peninsula. This is because Allah, the Almighty, wanted to make this part of the earth for the believers and Muslims only, so that they worship Him alone on this land, especially because it's the land of revelation, qibla (Muslims prayers destination), and the center of the Islamic world…Allah, the Almighty, says in the Quran: {the earth belongs to Allah. He causes to inherit it whom He wills of His servants. And the [best] outcome is for the righteous} (The Heights:128).

Second: The Arab pagans in the Arabian Peninsula didn't have an excuse to keep on their disbelief, because the prophet (PBUH) was sent from Allah, the Almighty, from among them, and the miraculous Quran reached them. They knew the prophet (PBUH), his honesty, and his bloodline. They knew him (PBUH) same as they knew their sons, so their disbelief in his prophecy was dreadful repudiation and arrogance. This was enough to expel them from the land, as people having such characteristics would be a reason behind mischief..

Third: They weren't expelled from the land except after Islam prevailed in the Arabian Peninsula, and people entered Islam in groups, except a small number of stubborns. Those people betrayed Muhammad (PBUH) and wanted to kill him. Besides, he (PBUH) ordered them to sell their houses and lands, to buy others in any other land, he (PBUH) said: "I want to exile you from this land, so whoever among you has property he should sell it". But when they betrayed him, he (PBUH) ordered them to leave the land without selling their properties, and the Arabian Peninsula means Al Hijaz only, not the whole Peninsula. This is proved in the following:

1 – Al Bukahri's Ibn Battal Interpretation, chapter 11, page 365: the author said: Those Jews expelled by the prophet (PBUH) were Bani Al Nadeer, they wanted to betray the messenger of Allah (PBUH), by throwing him with a stone, but Allah, the Almighty, informed His messenger (PBUH) with what they intended to do, so he (PBUH) ordered to expel them and let them go to wherever they wanted. When the hypocrites heard that, they sent to Bani Nadeer saying: "be firm and don't obey his orders, we won't leave you alone. If you are to fight against him, we will fight with you, and if you are expelled, we will go out with you. But they could do nothing, and Allah, the Almighty, made them horrified. Then, they asked the messenger of Allah (PBUH) to expel them, and don't fight or kill them, on condition that they take their money carried on their camels. The prophet responded to them, so they took their properties and went to Khaibar. Most of them went to the Levant, and left a part of their money they couldn't take to the prophet (PBUH), so he (PBUH) divided it on the immigrants.

The author said: Someone may say: this is opposite to Al Maqbari's narration from Abu Huraira, because the narration mentions that the prophet (PBUH) ordered them to sell their lands, and in Ibn Ishaq narration, it's mentioned that they left their land without selling them, so they became from the prophet's property. How come this?

The answer: The prophet ordered them to sell their lands before betraying him, they owned their lands, and they were in a reconciliation and a neighborhood with the prophet (PBUH). So, he didn't harm them, because they hadn't harmed him, and there was no covenant between them. Then, Allah, the Almighty, informed His messenger (PBUH) with their betrayal, and what they intend to do. Before knowing about their betrayal, he (PBUH) had ordered them to sell their lands and leave the Arabian Peninsula, but they didn't do it. This is because the hypocrites told them: "Be firm, and don't obey his orders. We won't leave you alone", so they trusted them, and didn't obey the prophet's (PBUH) orders. In addition to that, they intended to fight the prophet (PBUH) and kill him, so in that case it became permissible to him (PBUH) to kill them and take their money. He (PBUH) cordoned them with his companions, and when the hypocrites didn't help them as they promised, they were terrified and gave up, and asked the messenger of Allah (PBUH) about the offer he told them about before. He (PBUH) didn't allow them to buy their lands, and offered them to leave the land with what their camels could carry, in return for not killing them or taking their money. So, they left their houses without fight and bloodshed, their lands weren't the prophet's spoils, but the Jews left them out of fear, so it became the prophet's (PBUH) property. Ibn Ishaq said: only two men from Bani AL Nadeer entered Islam, so they got back their money, houses, and lands. There's a verse that was revealed for Bani Al Nadeer: {And if not that Allah had decreed for them evacuation, He would have punished them in [this] world, and for them in the Hereafter is the punishment of the Fire} (The Gathering:3). "He would have punished them" means by being captured or killed.
Abu Zaid narrated from Ibn Al Qasim, when he asked about a corrupted man who gathers evil people, what should be done with him? He answered: he must be taken away from his house, and it must be closed after leaving it. I asked: shall it be sold? He answered. No, so that he may repent later, and return to his house. Ibn Al Qasim added: and first he should be warned once, twice, and thrice to stop spreading his evil and corruption, but if he doesn't obey, he should be taken away from his house. This is mentioned at the end of the book of (Jehad), chapter (the prophet (PBUH) orders to expel the Jews from the Arabian Peninsula).
2 – Al Nawawi's interpretation for Muslim's book, chapter 5, page 395: it's mentioned "Omar evacuated them to Taimaa and Areehaa". These were two well known villages, and this is a proof for the prophet's (PBUH) intention to evacuate the Jews and the Christians from a certain part of the Arabian Peninsula, i.e. Al Hijaz, as Taimaa is inside the Arabian Peninsula, but not inside Al Hijaz.
Fourth: The Bible mentions killing and eradicating whole nations even without warning or inviting them to worship Allah, the Almighty. This is mentioned in the following:
1 – Evacuating and eradicating seven nations, and refusing their view or reconciliation..This is according to what the Lord said to prophet Moses (PBUH) in Deuteronomy 7

7 “When the LORD your God brings you into the land that you are entering to take possession of it, and clears away many nations before you, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations more numerous and mightier than you, 2 and when the LORD your God gives them over to you, and you defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction.[a] You shall make no covenant with them and show no mercy to them. 3 You shall not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, 4 for they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other gods. Then the anger of the LORD would be kindled against you, and he would destroy you quickly. 5 But thus shall you deal with them: you shall break down their altars and dash in pieces their pillars and chop down their Asherim and burn their carved images with fire.

2 – Prophet David (PBUH) and his forces kill their enemies and cut their bodies with saws. This is in 2 Samuel 12:26-31:
26 Now Joab fought against Rabbah of the Ammonites and took the royal city. 27 And Joab sent messengers to David and said, “I have fought against Rabbah; moreover, I have taken the city of waters. 28 Now then gather the rest of the people together and encamp against the city and take it, lest I take the city and it be called by my name.” 29 So David gathered all the people together and went to Rabbah and fought against it and took it. 30 And he took the crown of their king from his head. The weight of it was a talent[d] of gold, and in it was a precious stone, and it was placed on David's head. And he brought out the spoil of the city, a very great amount. 31 And he brought out the people who were in it and set them to labor with saws and iron picks and iron axes and made them toil at[e] the brick kilns. And thus he did to all the cities of the Ammonites. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.

3 – Jesus, the Christ (PBUH) orders his followers to slaughter he who isn't under his authority. This is mentioned in Luke 19:27:
27 But as for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slaughter them before me.’”!!
I have a question here: did the objectors read those words "and slaughter them before me"?!

Is that a slaughter for devotion? or a real slaughter?!
Did they object that verse and attacked it same as what they did with the prophet's (PBUH) speech, when they said that the prophet of Islam is the root of terrorism…?!

And what if Muhammad (PBUH) was the one who said those words "slaughter them before me"? How would they have reacted…?!

Another explanation
consultant: Mohsen Haredy AnswerSalam dear sister,Thank you for your question and for contacting Ask About Islam.We are sad to read that you left Islam for things that seem to be contradictory.First let’s agree that Islam is different from what Muslims do. Islam does not need beatification. Islam has a solution for all problems.The problem with some Muslims is the way they understand Islam and the way they practice it. Islam is about simplicity and easiness. Islam is about religious freedom and freedom of expression.We hope that the problem in question will be clarified and you will come back to the fold of Islam to feel the real happiness in this world and the world to come.With reference to the hadiths you quoted, they should be understood within their proper and correct context.The hadith reported in Muslim’s authentic collection of hadiths is talking about a specific region in the Arabian Peninsula. The Prophet (peace be upon him) used the terminology and the language that his companions understood and applied accordingly.Umar Ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) relocated the Jewish tribes of Khaybar and Fadak and sent them to Tayma and Ariha. These two regions are considered part of the Arabian Peninsula, but still the Jewish tribes were allowed to settle there.The scholars of hadith understood what Umar did to mean that the Jews and the Christians are not allowed in the region of al-Hijaz surrounding Makkah and Madinah.Imam Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani maintains that:“The pagans are not allowed to settle specifically in the Hijaz region, meaning Makkah, Madinah, al-Yamamah, and their environs. It does not apply to other regions that are considered part of the Arabian Peninsula. This is because everyone is agreed that they may live in Yemen, though it is part of the Arabian Peninsula. This is the opinion of the majority of scholars. (Fath al-Bari 6/198)Here we should differentiate between expelling the Jews and Christians and killing them. In no way did the Prophet mean to kill them. Under no context, it is allowed for Muslims to kill the Jews and the Christians as long as they enter the Muslim countries with an official visa which is considered like a pledge of protection granted to non-Muslims.Some scholars maintain that what is prohibited is to let the Jews and Christians have an independent state inside the Arabian Peninsula. They are allowed to stay there as workers and visitors. This stay is temporary and someday they will go home to their native lands.The Prophet allowed the Jews to stay in Khaybar and he hired them to work in farming. The Prophet had good relations with the Jews to the extent that at the time of his death, he had no money and his shield was being held in mortgage by a Jewish man.When Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) became the Caliph, the Jews were at Khaybar, the Christians were at Najran and the Jews of Yemen were at Yemen and are still there until today since they were never expelled by Muslims.The above mentioned explains how the Companions understood the Prophet’s command to expel the Jews and Christians from the Arabian Peninsula. As you can see, sister, we have to know the background and context of each narration reported from the Prophet (peace be upon him). Generalization is not always recommended. Each case has its own circumstances and what can be applied in a certain area cannot be applied literally in another.Finally, we ask you to reconsider the decision you have taken to abandon Islam for such issues. Please whenever you face a controversial or a thorny issue; try to consult people of knowledge who follow the moderate Islam which is based on the correct understanding of the Quran and the tradition (Sunnah) of the Prophet (peace be upon him).I hope this answers your question. Please keep in touch.Salam.